Psych Health and Safety Podcast

In this crossover episode co-host Jason van Schie makes a guest appearance on the UK Psych Health and Safety Podcast with Sheila Lord and Peter Kelly. Jason describes the primary, secondary, and tertiary approaches to psych health and safety, and argues that secondary approaches have been largely missing in organisations. He discusses how an organisation can approach psych health and safety when the job is inherently psychologically hazardous. He responds to critics who claim that most psychosocial hazards are outside of the control of organisations, and describes why the popular approaches to psych health and safety don't work. He then provides leaders with some guidance on where to get started implementing psych health and safety for their teams.

In this episode we chat with Karen Maher, Founder of SmartCulture. Karen describes for us the current state of workplace bullying in Australia, and the consequences for victims, bystanders, people accused of bullying, and the organisations in which bullying occurs. She discusses the impact of the pandemic on bullying behaviours, and shares why she coined the term "pandemic bullying". She shares some practical examples of risk management approaches to bullying prevention, and provides strategies for people witnessing bullying on how to be an "active bystander". https://smartculture.com.au/

In this episode we chat with Jason Anker MBE, Chairman & Director of Anker & Marsh. In a very different episode, Jason shares with us his story of how a workplace accident changed his life. This isn't your typical safety story though. Jason explores what had happened in his life in the 12 months prior to the workplace accident, how his psychological state had been affected over that period, and the influence of his psychological state on his decision-making that day. If you're sceptical about the link between safety outcomes and psychological health, check out what Jason has to say. https://ankerandmarsh.co.uk/

In this episode we chat with Dr Hillary Bennett, Director of Leading Safety and the Resiliency Centre. Hillary discusses the state of workplace mental health and the maturity of current approaches to psychological health and safety in New Zealand. She shares a framework to help businesses implement strategies to prevent harm as well as to facilitate early identification and recovery should harm occur, and describes the processes she finds effective in conducting a psychosocial risk assessment.

In this episode we chat with Captain Paul Cullen and Dr Joan Cahill from the University of Dublin. Paul and Joan have been researching psych health and safety in the aviation industry, and they share their methods and findings with us. They discuss the main sources of work-related stress for aviation workers, pre-COVID, and describe how work-related stress can affect flight safety. They then discuss the impact of the pandemic on aviation workers, identifying that some demographics of workers have been affected more significantly than others. They discuss what the aviation industry is currently doing to address psych health and safety, and share their hopes for the future of psych health and safety in aviation. https://www.tcd.ie/cihs/assets/pdf/TurbulentTimes.pdf https://www.tcd.ie/cihs/projects/lived-experience.php https://www.tcd.ie/cihs/projects/pilot-lived.php https://www.linkedin.com/company/lived-experience-wellbeing-project https://flightsafety.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/04/Guide-to-Wellbeing.pdf https://www.skybrary.aero/bookshelf/books/5669.pdf https://www.tcd.ie/cihs/assets/pdf/projects/covid-whitepaper.pdf https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/24721840.2020.1858714?scroll=top&needAccess=true https://www.mdpi.com/2227-7080/8/3/40 https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10111-019-00586-z

In this episode we chat with Jason Mavrikis and Jo Hatchard from SafeWork South Australia (SWSA). They tell us about the Education team in SWSA, the support it provides to businesses, and how the team works with the Inspection team to help dutyholders meet their obligations. They clarify the role of SWSA in regulating psychological health and safety, and provide a summary of what the regulator can and cannot do when they receive a psych health and safety complaint. They describe what is involved in prosecution, and share a case study of the first successful prosecution under WHS law of a bullying complaint.

In this episode we chat with Professor Tim Marsh, Chartered Psychologist and Chartered Fellow of IOSH, Managing Director of Anker & Marsh and Honorary Professor at the University of Plymouth. We chat about one of Tim's books, 'A Definitive Guide to Behavioural Safety'. Tim gives us his views on the relationship between behavioural safety and psych health and safety, and talks about the ways in which psych health and safety contributes to a range of organisational outcomes including safety, quality, reputation, and profitability. https://www.shponline.co.uk/culture-and-behaviours/why-james-reason-was-looking-in-the-wrong-direction-and-mental-health-first-aiders-are-only-a-part-of-the-answer/ https://www.shponline.co.uk/slips-trips-and-falls/behavioural-safety-and-blue-pies-trip-hazards/

In this episode we chat with Dr Kirsten Way, Senior Lecturer at the University of Queensland, author of the OHS Body of Knowledge chapter on Psychosocial Hazards, and contributor to the Australian Institute of Health & Safety Position Paper on Psychological Health and Safety at Work. Kirsten gives us a comprehensive overview of the AIHS position paper, the drivers for its development, and the goals that the paper hopes to achieve. She then discusses the relationship between the position paper and the BOK chapter. She describes the competencies that OHS generalists should develop in relation to psych health and safety, and the role of the OHS generalist in managing the overlaps between professions and areas of responsibility and authority within organisations, when addressing psych health and safety risk. https://www.aihs.org.au/sites/default/files/PS%20AIHS%20Psychological%20Heath%20and%20Safety%20at%20Work.pdf https://www.ohsbok.org.au/chapter-19-psychosocial-hazards-and-occupational-stress/ https://www.ohsbok.org.au/chapter-21-psychosocial-hazards-bullying-aggression-and-violence/

In this episode we chat with Niclas Wisen, a military psychologist from Sweden. Niclas discusses the psychosocial hazards that members of the military experience, and describes some of the approaches adopted within the Swedish military to manage psychosocial risk. Some of the strategies described include adopting de-stigmatising language, alignment with physical health terminology, and equipping personnel with the skills to cope with the unique situations experienced during deployment.

In this episode we chat with Clive Lloyd, Psychologist, Principal Consultant at GYST Consulting, and author of "Next Generation Safety Leadership: From Compliance to Care". Clive talks about the impact of fear and trust in the workplace, and describes the undermining effect that active mistrust can have on any improvement initiatives. He describes the research supporting the idea that leader benevolence (i.e. care) makes a significant contribution to psych health and safety outcomes, and suggests a range of practical strategies that leaders can apply to start to build trust and demonstrate care to their workforce.

In this episode we chat with Dr Joti Samra, CEO and Founder of My Workplace Health, and founding member of the CSA Technical Committee that developed the National Standard of Canada for Psychological Health and Safety in the Workplace. Dr Joti shares with us her recollections of developing the Guarding Minds at Work framework and the Canadian National Standard. She provides us with a great example of how much work is actually involved in developing an evidence-based framework, and shares her views on why our use of language is so important in talking about psychological health and safety rather than mental health.

In this episode, we chat with Angela Martin, Founder and Principal Consultant of Pracademia, and current Professorial Research Fellow at the Menzies Institute for Medical Research at the University of Tasmania. Angela gives us a comprehensive insight into the challenges small and micro businesses face in implementing psych health and safety strategies and describes some of the significant psychosocial hazards to which small business owners are exposed. Angela then points us to some excellent, free resources available to assist small businesses meet their psych health and safety obligations for their employees, as well as resources designed to support small business owners in practical ways. She also describes how larger businesses can support the psych health and safety of their supply chain providers through simple policy changes, and shares some information about upcoming small business supports currently in development.

In this crossover episode with Hugo Ribeiro's Segurança Diferente, co-host Joelle Mitchell discusses how OHS practitioners can use their existing skill sets to address psychosocial risk at work, talks about how to reduce the psych hazards associated with working from home during the pandemic, describes some of the psychosocial hazards and controls that might not typically be associated with mental health, and provides some suggestions on how OHS practitioners can better understand work-as-done. https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0nThwKDYYwHRmhq36NPbig

In this episode we chat with Jake Field, Chief of Staff for the Maritime Union of Australia. Jake gives us some information about what the MUA does for its members - the things that might not make the cover of the newspaper - and shares his views about the increasing collaborative role of unions in psych health and safety. Jake shares examples of successful consultation and collaboration within organisations, and at a strategic level between government, unions, industry bodies, and regulators.

In this episode we chat with Jennifer Low, Director of Health and Safety and Workers Compensation Policy at the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Jen gives us an overview of the different projects ACCI has been involved with in the psych health and safety space, and discusses some of the challenges small businesses have in adopting standards and codes of practice. Jen has also been involved in the Mentally Healthy Workplace Alliance, development of new units of competence for the VET sector, and Safe Work Australia's national Return to Work Strategy. She gives us an overview of those projects, current status, and a brief lookahead. Finally we have a chat about the differences in psych health and safety messaging between public health and risk management perspectives, and the implications of the variation in messaging for small business.

In this crossover episode, Jason van Schie makes a guest appearance on Safety on Tap with Andrew Barrett. Jason talks about the distinction between psychological safety and psychological health and safety (did you know they are two completely different concepts?); summarises the differences between Clinical and Organisational psychologists and the roles that both areas of practice play in psychological health and safety; explores the role of the employer in helping employees return to a state of positive mental health; and provides his thoughts on good starting points for organisations who want to improve their approach to psych health and safety.

In this episode we chat with Daniela Masters, Head of Global Health and Wellbeing Programs at Generali Employee Benefits. Daniela brings a unique perspective having insight into a number of multinational organisations, and describes some of the challenges in achieving collaboration between HR and OSH functions within multinational organisations given their size and structural complexity. We discuss the shared responsibility model for employee mental health, and Daniela describes the issue of self-stigma, where individuals are supportive of others seeking mental health help but feel unable or unwilling to do so themselves. We then talk about mental health indicators, and Daniela shares with us some interesting and unexpected data sources.

In this episode we chat with Dr Richard Claydon, Chief Cognitive Officer at EQ Lab. Richard introduces the concept of impression management as a workplace psychosocial hazard. Richard describes how the increasing complexity of work combined with more regular work from home creates a constant drive for impression management, which can lead to burn out, depression, anxiety, and a range of other adverse health outcomes. Richard then goes on to describe different strategies and approaches that organisations and individuals can implement to reduce the drivers for impression management, improve productivity, and develop leaders who are effective rather than leaders who are "performers" (in the theatrical sense of the word).

In this episode we chat with Bob Stenhouse, Principal Director of Veritas Solutions. Bob shares his experiences of being an undercover operative with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, including posing as a contracted hitman, and what it was like to be a whistleblower before there were legal protections in place. We then talk about how best to conduct an investigation into workplace psychosocial hazards. Bob emphasises the need for a trauma-informed approach to such investigations, in particular for claims of assault, harassment, and bullying.

In this crossover episode with the Melius Performance Podcast, co-host Jason van Schie chats with Dr Ian Dunican about a broad range of workplace mental health matters. Jason speaks to concerns from the perspective of the employer and the employee, describes the shared responsibility model for workplace mental health, debunks misconceptions, and challenges misapplication of some of the more popular wellbeing approaches.

In this episode we chat with Ian Firth, State Inspector with SafeWork NSW and key contributor to the development of the NSW Draft Code of Practice for Psychological Health at Work. Ian takes us through the state of psychological health and safety in NSW, drawing from workers compensation statistics and workplace benchmarking data. Ian then speaks to the NSW Mentally Healthy Workplaces strategy, and gives us a progress update on the Draft Code of Practice, themes coming out of the public consultation process, and what we can expect to see next. https://www.haveyoursay.nsw.gov.au/draft-code-managing-psychological-health https://www.mentalhealthatwork.nsw.gov.au/

In this episode we chat with Mary Ann Baynton, the "godmother of psychological health and safety", and Director for Strategy and Collaboration at Workplace Strategies for Mental Health. She shares with us the story of the inception of the Canadian National Standard for Psychological Health and Safety - it all starts in a bar... In addition to the National Standard, Mary Ann has contributed to the development of a wealth of resources to help organisations better manage psychological health and safety - and they're free! We also talk about the role of leadership in creating psychologically healthy and safe workplaces, and how psychological health and safety interventions can help businesses achieve their strategic goals. https://www.workplacestrategiesformentalhealth.com/

In this episode we chat with Sandra Lam, Organisational Psychologist and Founder and Managing Director of FIFO Focus, helping Fly in Fly out (FIFO) workers to maintain good mental health and employers to design their organisation and work to enable psychological wellbeing. Sandra shares her observations of how psychological health and safety is managed in the FIFO world, what employers could do differently, and the changes she has seen in Western Australia following the Parliamentary Inquiry into FIFO mental health and subsequent publication of the DMIRS Code of Practice. She also has some great advice for early-career Organisational Psychologists, and other professionals with an interest in workplace psych health and safety.

In this episode we chat with Diya Dey, the second Organisational Psychologist to feature this week. Diya has a wealth of experience working with State Government in the field of health, safety and wellbeing. In this episode, Diya explains what vicarious trauma is, how it develops, which professions are more at risk, and the different career stages where vicarious trauma risk tends to increase. Diya then takes us through what a systems-based approach to vicarious trauma risk management looks like, acknowledging the shared responsibility model where both the employer and the employee each contributes to risk reduction. She shares some practical interventions that employers can use to reduce employee exposure to vicarious trauma risk, and discusses how higher risk professions can build a culture of professional development that includes strategies known to reduce individual risk.

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In this episode we chat with and receive insights from highly experienced health and safety leader Wade Needham, currently working at General Manager, Environment, Health and Safety Australasia at Fresh Country Farms of Australia. When it comes to workplace mental health, HSE and HR professionals often work in silos, but these two professions have highly complimentary skills when it comes to protecting employees against psychosocial hazards and crafting work experiences that promote mental wellbeing. We discuss the need to not just focus on individual wellbeing, but also consider systemic interventions. Voluntary versus mandatory participation is debated. Leadership commitment is vital for workplace wellbeing initiatives to work, and Wade shares some ways in which HSE and HR can collaborate on this.

In this episode:1:00 Meet your co-hosts14:00 Why a psychologically healthy and safe workplace is different to a mentally healthy workplace17:30 The current approach to workplace mental health is backwards22:00 Why are EAPs used in place of psychological injury prevention?24:00 How fatigue risk management and psychological health and safety are very similar25:30 SNAPS versus PERMA for mental health promotion36:00 Why are physical injury rates going down but psychological injury rates trending up?42:30 Why it’s important to treat employees as humans not machinesJ45:30 Psychosocial hazard identification: the importance of employee consultation48:30 Psychological risk management. 51:30 The latest workplace stress and psychological injury statistics.59:00 Will the stick work better than the carrot to improve employee mental health?1:04:00 Why does workplace mental health now fall under the HSE portfolio?107:30 How psych health and safety will deliver more opportunities for people and safety professionals Resources:UK HSE Management StandardNational Standard of Canada for psychological health and safety in the workplaceSafeWork Australia: Work-related psychological health and safety: A systematic approach to meeting your dutiesISO 45003 (Draft): Occupational health and safety management — Psychological health and safety at work : managing psychosocial risks — GuidelinesSafeWork NSW: Draft NSW Code of Practice Managing the risks to psychological healthUK: Labour Force Survey - Self-reported work-related ill health and workplace injuriesSafeWork Australia: Australian Workers’ Compensation Statistics 2018-19SafeWork NSW: Psychological Injury Claims

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